Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Hector Flores, M.D.

Thoracic Surgery · El Paso, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Speaking/Promotional
1600 MEDICAL CENTER DR STE 212, El Paso, TX 79902
9155323977
In practice since 2007 (18 years)
NPI: 1972784247 verify on NPPES ↗
Very High
DATA COVERAGE
Data in 4 of 4 federal sources
Measures public federal data availability — not provider quality
Informational, not a quality rating. This page presents federal public records about Dr. Flores from CMS (NPPES, Open Payments, Medicare Provider Utilization, PECOS). It is not medical advice, an endorsement, or a judgment of clinical quality. Always consult the provider directly and a licensed clinician for medical decisions. Read methodology →
Are you Dr. Flores? Request a correction or review of any data shown here. Provider portal →

What this data tells you about Dr. Flores

Dr. Hector Flores is a thoracic surgery in El Paso, TX, with 18 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Flores performed 108 Medicare services across 108 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Flores received a total of $190,862 from 16 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 359 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in thoracic surgery. The majority of payments are for speaking programs and promotional activities, reflecting participation in industry-sponsored events. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.

The Data Coverage level for Dr. Flores is Very High — reflecting how much public federal data is available about this provider. This is not a quality rating. Patients are encouraged to use this data as one of several factors when choosing a healthcare provider.

✓ 18 years in practice▲ 108 Medicare services$ $190,862 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
108
Medicare services
Bottom 43% in TX for thoracic surgery
108
Unique beneficiaries
$247
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~6 Medicare services per year of practice

Top procedures by volume

Ranked by number of services performed for Medicare patients. Avg. submitted charge is what the provider billed; avg. Medicare payment is what CMS paid.

ProcedureVolumeAvg. paidAvg. submitted
New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min)31$153$300
Insertion of artery tube for blood sampling or infusion through skin24$35$250
Initial hospital admission, high complexity19$136$300
Coronary artery bypass using artery graft, 1 graft12$1,423$5,800
Insertion of non-tunneled central venous tube for infusion (5 years or older)11$65$250
Insertion of tube in pulmonary artery for monitoring11$68$500
How to read this data: This reflects Medicare patients only (typically 65+). Payment amounts are what Medicare paid the provider, not your out-of-pocket cost. A higher procedure volume generally indicates more experience with that procedure.
43.5% high complexity
0.0% medium
56.5% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$190,862
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $27,266/year across 7 years
Top 4% in TX for thoracic surgery
16
Companies
359
Individual payments
All payments are legal and publicly reported · Not evidence of wrongdoing · How to interpret →

Payment profile

Industry payments classified by relationship type. Not all payments are equal — research and consulting reflect different relationships than speaking programs or meals.

Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$179,182 (93.9%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$11,680 (6.1%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$7,825
2023
$35,580
2022
$8,322
2021
$10,017
2020
$31,869
2019
$32,557
2018
$64,691

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Intuitive Surgical, Inc.
$173,616
INTUITIVE SURGICAL, INC.
$5,566
ABIOMED
$2,986
Abbott Laboratories
$2,736
Medtronic, Inc.
$1,779
AtriCure, Inc.
$989
ATRICURE, INC.
$945
Medtronic Vascular, Inc.
$721
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation
$431
W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.
$424
Chiesi USA, Inc.
$191
CVRx, Inc.
$164
Ethicon Inc.
$111
LivaNova USA, Inc.
$102
ShockWave Medical, Inc
$91
Smith+Nephew, Inc.
$12
Top 3 companies account for 95.4% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
3F · ACUSEAL Vascular Graft · ATRICLIP LAA EXCLUSION SYSTEM · ATRICURE CRYOICE CRYOABLATION SYSTEM (CRYO2) · ATRICURE CRYOICE CRYOSPHERE CRYOABLATION SYSTEM · ATRICURE SYNERGY ABLATION SYSTEM · AtriCure AtriClip LAA Exclusion System · Barostim Neo System · CARDIOMEMS · CLEVIPREX · CONNECT · COREVALVE EVOLUT R · CoreValve Evolut · DA VINCI SP · Da Vinci Surgical System · ENDURANT IIS · EPI-SENSE GUIDED COAGULATION SYS · EPI-SENSE GUIDED COAGULATION SYSTEM WITH VISITRAX · Edwards SAPIEN 3 Transcatheter Heart Valve · Edwards SAPIEN 3 Ultra Transcatheter Heart Valve · Epi-Sense Guided Coagulation System with VisiTrax · GORE VIABAHN Endoprosthesis · GORE VIABAHN VBX Balloon Expandable Endo · HawkOne · Impella · KENGREAL · Mitra Clip system · MitraClip System · Models · Monarch Platform · OCTOPUS · PICO 7 Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy · Pacemakers · Quadra Assura CRT Defibrillator · Quartet CRT Lead · Resolute · SYNERGY ABLATION SYSTEM · Shockwave Intravascular Lithotripsy (IVL) System with the Shockwave C2+ Coronary · Xience Sierra Coronary Stent System
Should you be concerned? Payments from pharmaceutical and device companies are legal and common — 57% of U.S. physicians receive at least one. They often reflect legitimate consulting, research, or education. What matters is whether a recommended drug or device appears in your doctor's payment records. If so, consider asking your doctor about it. How to interpret this data →

The majority of payments (94%) are for speaking programs and promotional activities, which reflect participation in industry-sponsored educational or marketing events. This is common in thoracic surgery and does not inherently indicate bias, but patients may wish to be aware. Total industry engagement is in the top 4% for thoracic surgery in TX.

Equivalent to $176,724 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a thoracic surgery in El Paso?
Compare thoracic surgerys in the El Paso area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
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Geographic Context

Thoracic Surgerys within 10 mi
6
Per 100K population
0.7
County median income
$58,859
Nearest hospital
THE HOSPITALS OF PROVIDENCE - MEMORIAL CAMPUS
0.0 mi

Data Sources

Provider Registry NPPESWeekly updates
Medicare Enrollment PECOSMonthly updates
Practice Data Medicare Util.Annual (CY lag)
Industry Payments Open PaymentsCY 2024
Disciplinary History— Not publicN/A

This provider has data in 4 of 4 available federal datasets, with a Data Coverage level of Very High. This measures how much public data is available about a provider — not how good they are. How we calculate this →

Summary

Dr. Flores is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and high industry engagement (speaking/promotional, top 4%), with 18 years of practice experience.

This summary is auto-generated from federal data. It describes data availability and patterns — not clinical quality. Read our methodology →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Dr. Flores experienced with new patient office visit, complex (60-74 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Flores performed 31 new patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) services. Research suggests that higher procedure volume is often associated with better outcomes, particularly for complex procedures. Note that Medicare data only captures patients aged 65 and older, so the total practice volume across all patients is likely higher.
Does Dr. Flores receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Flores received a total of $190,862 from 16 companies across 359 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common among physicians — 57% of all U.S. physicians receive at least one industry payment. Patients may wish to ask their doctor about these relationships, especially if a recommended drug or device appears in the payment records.
How do Dr. Flores's costs compare to other thoracic surgerys in El Paso?
Dr. Flores's average Medicare payment per service is $247. Note that these figures represent what Medicare pays, not your out-of-pocket cost, which depends on your specific insurance plan and deductible. Procedure-level data above shows both what was submitted and what Medicare paid for each service type.
What does Data Coverage mean?
Data Coverage (currently Very High for Dr. Flores) measures how much public federal data is available about a provider. It is not a quality rating. A "Very High" or "High" level means the provider has data across multiple federal sources (NPPES, PECOS, Medicare Utilization, Open Payments), indicating a long track record of practice, Medicare participation, and industry disclosure. A "Low" or "Moderate" level may simply mean the provider is newer, does not see Medicare patients, or has not received any industry payments — none of which are inherently negative. Read our full methodology →
Is this data up to date?
Each data source has its own update cycle. Provider registry data (NPPES) is updated weekly. Medicare enrollment (PECOS) is updated monthly. Medicare practice data has a ~2 year lag — the most recent available is typically 2 years prior. Industry payment data (Open Payments) is published annually, usually in June, covering the prior calendar year. We display the data date prominently on each section so you always know how current it is. See our data freshness policy →
About this page

All data on this page is sourced verbatim from public federal records published by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): NPPES ↗, Open Payments ↗, Medicare Provider Utilization ↗, and PECOS. Publication is mandated by the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (§6002 ACA, 42 U.S.C. §1320a-7h) and the Freedom of Information Act.

This page is not medical advice, an endorsement, a recommendation, or a quality rating. The Transparency Score measures data completeness — how much federal information exists for this provider — not clinical performance, patient outcomes, or quality of care. Always verify information directly with the provider and consult a licensed clinician before making medical decisions.

Provider corrections: Provider portal · Privacy questions: Privacy Policy · Terms: Terms of Use · Methodology: Methodology

Data Disclaimer — Data sourced from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), Open Payments program, Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data, and Provider Enrollment & Certification data (PECOS). Published under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). This website is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by CMS, HHS, or the U.S. Government. Data may contain errors as reported to CMS by providers and reporting entities. Payments from industry are legal and do not indicate wrongdoing. Medicare data reflects only patients aged 65+ or those with qualifying disabilities. For corrections, contact CMS directly. This information does not constitute medical advice and should not be used as the sole basis for choosing a healthcare provider. Procedure descriptions use plain language and do not reference CPT® codes, which are copyrighted by the American Medical Association. Full methodology → · Report a data error → · Privacy policy →